Reckoning
by EilayAdnayVolieay
Summary: For the time being, they are safe, but how long can the feeling of protection last? Soon, they'll be face to face with the Edison Group again. Secrets revealed, worlds shattered - there's no telling what they'll unleash. DerekxChloe
1. Prologue

**A/N**: For those who have me on author alert and are glaring at this fanfiction because it's not the one you want me to be working on – I apologize. I have not forgotten any of my stories, especially not those for Final Fantasy VIII, but I really need to be writing to get out of the slump I have been in, and I've got a lot of built up inspiration for fanfictions for this book that I have just read. The section is also in need of more fanfiction, I think it should be far more popular than it is. I promise, I will be working on my other stories soon, and I will try to make it the very best update it can be. To those who are just reading something by me for the first time, you're probably confused – but don't worry, you'll get used to me ;P I want to thank you in advance for checking out my story, and warn you that I tend to be a chatterbox. I also want to thank the author of the Darkest Powers books because it's hopefully giving me the inspiration I need to write something for people to actually read, rather than just my novella for my Writer's Craft class! (Which, for the record, I still need to finish. Blah.) Please review to let me know your thoughts, critique, and all that good stuff. I promise to reply if you do! This is my first Darkest Powers fanfiction, so bear with me as I get a handle on the characters (and writing in the first person, which I traditionally hate but am trying for experimental purposes!).

**Disclaimer**: If I owned the Darkest Powers trilogy, you wouldn't be reading this on here; you'd be buying the next book. Still, for the purpose of stating it officially: I do not own this series, and am in NO WAY affiliated with it at all. Oh, how I wish I was… haha.

**Note**: This chapter will just be kind of summarizing what happened in the three chapter preview on the official Darkest Powers site, which my next chapter will continue from. It will also be helping me get used to writing in the first person. It will NOT be the first three rough chapters word for word, because that is not cool.

**Reckoning**

_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Prologue

As I sat in the room that, for the time being, was to be called my own, I thought over the events with the strange ghost in my mind, replaying it again and again. Whoever this ghost was – or had been – he had tricked me easily. Too easily. If I hadn't thought of raising my voice to alert Derek to what was going on, I could have been in serious trouble. This power that I had of raising the dead was getting me into more and more trouble. I needed to learn to control it.

He – the ghost – had told me that he could give me answers that I wanted. About the Edison Group, about the Genesis Experiments, about all the things that were haunting my mind. Foolishly, I had believed him and followed him. The only thing I was grateful for is that I hadn't completely lost my sense and that Derek had, in fact, heard me earlier in the hall.

Thank God for small miracles.

Of course, this jerk of a ghost had refused to tell me anything until I told him a little about myself. Whether or not I had a boyfriend, who it was… the fact that Derek hadn't even been considered a candidate for that role irked me for reasons I wasn't all too aware of. Maybe because I was getting to know him better, this other side of him that wasn't as bad as people thought. Or maybe because he was often brushed off for things that were out of his control, though it seemed as though his out of control puberty problems were finally getting reigned in.

For some reason, the ghost had also wanted me to believe that Andrew – the friend of Simon and Derek's father who had brought us here to this safe house – was actually leading us into a trap. That plan had failed completely when I tricked the ghost into saying that Andrew's name was Charles and that he was Dr. Fellows who, it turned out, was my aunt – and she definitely wasn't a man!

That was when I had taken matters into my own hands to get rid of that annoying ghost, and when – thankfully – Derek had come to my rescue. I guess I should have been annoyed that I always seemed to get into those "damsel in distress" situations and that it always was Derek who came to my rescue, but I wasn't. I'd been there for Derek at times too, when he'd really needed to be around someone. We weren't exactly the best of friends, but we had a definite bond, and there was a new unspoken agreement between us that for the most part, put an end to the bickering.

Usually.

We talked for awhile after he made sure I was out of danger's way, and he was acting a bit strange. Too calm, not enough anger – he passed it off as his fever and his unease at finally being in a safe place. I could understand myself, at least about the last part. We had been far from safe for a while now, and it was hard to believe we were safe now.

Simon walked in on us and seemed a little jealous that we had been talking, alone, so late at night. I guess he had a sort of thing for me – no, it was obvious he did, and I thought he was really cute. Did it go beyond that? Who could even think of such trivial things when we were on the run for our lives?

Okay, maybe we weren't on the run right _now, _but that wasn't the point. I wasn't really looking for romance at all to begin with, and my life being in danger hadn't changed that.

Derek always seemed the smarter, more practical one of the two. Simon was very trusting, and though that wasn't a bad thing, it could be a problem in these times where even the good guys were kind of the bad guys. After I told both of the brothers that I had followed the ghost for answers, and of my worries that seeing the ghost meant it had died here, Derek decided we should find our own answers. Simon wanted to ask Andrew, but we couldn't take any chances. Sure, he'd been friends with their dad, but their dad hadn't liked this organization for a reason. Maybe we shouldn't either.

After a bit more discussion, I had told them I was going to go back to lie down for awhile – even though I knew I was too afraid to actually go to sleep – and headed back for the room I shared with Tori.

This is where I sat now, too worried to go to sleep, even if I desperately needed it. One thing was certain – I needed help mastering my skills as a necromancer. I couldn't handle this fear that I would summon a spirit in my sleep, and I couldn't avoid sleeping forever. Not if I wanted to be any help in the days to come. Before I knew it, my eyes began to droop, and despite my objections, I was soon in a light, uneasy sleep.

**A/N**: Not much yet, of course, I mostly wanted to try and narrate the first three unedited chapters that were released as a preview on Kelley Armstrong's site, and add my own flavour to it a bit. Again, I'm still getting used to these characters, so be as harsh as you like, permitted you're trying to help me and not just tell me I'm failing without offering to help. (After all, how will I learn? ;P ) That said, please review and let me know what you think! I'll be working on more chapters for this quite a lot so I can get back into the swing of things while I work on getting back into my other fanfictions that I sadly have neglected. My chapters will normally be longer than this, just a heads up.


	2. Falling Out

**A/N**: Still following me here? WOO! This chapter will be the first real chapter that is purely me, so I'm a little nervous, but we'll work through it! Or, well, I will, heh. Thanks for reading, and, with any luck, reviewing!

**Disclaimer**: The Darkest Powers books, and all of their characters (unless otherwise stated!) belong to someone far more famous than me.

**Reckoning**

_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter II – Falling Out

I woke up with sweat beads on my forehead, and I brushed them aside with the back of my hand before sitting up. A glance at the bed next to me showed me that Tori was already gone; I can't say I was sad to miss her – she wasn't exactly a morning person.

We hadn't had all that much time to explore when we'd arrived. Mostly we'd been exhausted, and even if some of us were leery about finally being in a safe place, we wanted to take advantage of being able to sleep peacefully. The opportunity didn't present itself all that often.

I got out of bed and caught my reflection in a mirror on the wall. I looked completely haggard and worn, and I decided that as soon as possible, I was going to get some fresh clothes that weren't covered in blood or dirt, and I was going to get that red hair dye Derek had said we could grab to fix my fake looking hair. We might be on the run, but we didn't always have to look the part. It would be a good idea to get back to looking a little more normal, so that if we had to make a getaway, we wouldn't be such obvious runaways.

…and now I was beginning to think like a runaway, think like Derek. In some ways, that may not have been a bad thing – it hadn't been that long ago that I found out the guy was doing work that was way above his usual age level in school – but in this case, it made me sad. I was already accepting that I was no longer the same girl I had been before I'd gone to Lyle House. I was a necromancer, a powerful and out of control one at that. I needed to work on controlling that, and it was already on my to-do list to figure that out. Still, the fact that I was picking up some street smarts… it worried me a little. That wasn't something I should be worrying about, but there was no alternative.

I brushed my hair a little with the cheap comb Derek and I had shared before we'd met up with Tori and Simon again at Andrew's, before heading out of the room and down the stairs to find the others.

For the most part, the place we were staying seemed like your typical fancy home, though it was very old fashioned. Passed down to the organization through the founders will, Andrew had told us. He wanted our help in going against the Edison Group, but I wasn't so sure about it. We'd just risked our lives to get away from them – how could we be expected to risk them again to fight them?

"Look who finally dragged her ass out of bed," Tori snorted, drinking a cup of coffee. "And you guys thought _I _acted like a spoiled princess."

"Trust me, you still win the spoiled princess award." I heard Simon retort as I stepped further into the room. They were eating breakfast at a long table, and though there were many other places set, no one else apart from Derek, Simon, and Tori, were in sight.

I took a seat next to Tori, no matter how uncomfortable _that _may have been, and began dishing out food on to a plate. I was starving – we'd been lucky enough to get some real food when we'd stopped at Andrew's to find him, but apart from that we'd been able to eat very little. It was nice, having such a variety of food to choose from. It felt like home, which made my stomach twist into uncomfortable knots.

"Did you sleep?" Derek asked me quietly, staring at me intensely. I knew what he was really asking – had I been able to get to sleep without summoning the ghost we had talked about just a few hours previously?

"Yeah, actually, I did. I never meant to but nothing life threatening came from it so I guess it's a good thing." It was no secret from any of the people sitting at this table that even in my dreams, I could summon ghosts unwillingly. After seeing a corpse crawling up my body, I'm sure I wasn't the only one who couldn't forget.

"Andrew is explaining why we're here to some of the other members. Not all of them are here, because the group isn't as active as it once was – he said that too many of the people with any influence believed that the things the Edison Group did were for the greater good and that it would take awhile to get them willing to listen to us, a bunch of runaways." Derek explained to me, as I gobbled down food in the most unladylike way possible. If Tori wasn't too busy snapping a retort at Simon for something he'd said to her, she probably would have turned her nose up at me. Derek didn't really care, and Simon…

"Hey, Derek, give the girl a chance to wake up," Simon said lightly, turning away from Tori. Derek glared at him.

"We're not here on vacation. We're not here to relax and let the adults handle everything like we're a bunch of little kids. They want our help, and if we're going to be any help at all, we all need to know what we're up against. I'm sure Chloe doesn't mind me catching her up to speed, whether she just woke up or not, but if she has any objections, I think she can say them for herself." Simon looked completely shocked and I can't say I blamed him. He and Derek were usually very close, the best of friends. They didn't fight or snap at each other. I wanted to say something to make the situation better, but Derek just mumbled an apology and stalked off to be on his own.

"I guess cranky Derek is back," Simon sighed, giving me a small wink. "We'll live."

"Yeah," I murmured. "Guess so." I wondered what it was that had set Derek off so much. He had been fevered the last time I'd seen him, and thought he might begin to change within a day or so if he was lucky. I thought of checking on him, but he needed some time to himself without me hovering over him, and the food in front of me wasn't letting me go anywhere anytime soon.

Later, I promised, I would go find him. Make sure he was okay.

* * *

It wasn't entirely easy getting away from Simon, who, after not being able to be around me much for so long, was really trying to get some alone time so we could talk. Any time he had tried to mention anything personal about the two of us, an interruption or obstacle of some kind always got in the way. I admit, I was sort of grateful – I didn't know how I felt about Simon, but I did know that I wanted more time to work it out for myself without the pressure of knowing he or anyone else was waiting for some kind of response.

After telling him I desperately needed to shower, I made my escape and began looking for Derek. It wasn't easy – I had no idea which way he'd headed after leaving the dining room, and the house was quite large – but I knew I needed to make sure he was okay. He'd saved me so much since we'd met, and making sure he was okay, being there for him when he was beginning to change, was the only thing really in my ability to pay him back.

He wasn't in the room he shared with Simon, though I wasn't surprised. I had the brief thought that he might be back on the roof where he had rescued me from, but even if he was, there was no way in hell I was going back up there anytime soon. No, I'd just have to keep looking.

The house felt eerily empty; I hadn't run into anyone apart from Tori, Simon and Derek, and though Derek had said Andrew was talking to the others about us, I had the question of _where _they were imprinted in my mind. So far, I hadn't noticed them at all. The place barely looked lived in.

Something caught my attention from the corner of my eye, and as I looked out the window down below, I saw Derek heading into the forested area around the house. I didn't know if that meant he was going to change, or if he just wanted fresh air – but I knew I was going out after him.

The air outside was cool, and I silently cursed myself for not grabbing a jacket of some kind before heading out. It was too late now, and I hurried into the woods after Derek. I saw him sitting on the ground, his shoulders rising as he breathed heavily.

"Derek?" I called out softly. He turned to face me, and I saw the sweat glistening on his face. I knew now why he had lashed out at Simon, and why he had been so quick to escape. Though it wasn't night, I knew that being a werewolf and changing into one wasn't a thing dictated by the patterns of the moon, and so it probably wasn't specific to day or night. After all, he didn't turn into an actual wolf man – but instead a real wolf.

If he ever completed the change all the way, that is.

"You… shouldn't be here." He told me, but there was little conviction in his voice. He wanted someone here; he didn't want to be alone.

"I'm not going anywhere, so get used to it." I told him firmly, walking toward him. "I'm tired of you warning me that it's too dangerous or trying to shove me away. It hasn't scared me so far, it's not going to start. You're forgetting, I'm the girl who can talk to ghosts," I reminded him, hoping to get a small smile out of him. Anything to distract him from the pain he was surely feeling. His muscles didn't appear to be convulsing, but that didn't mean anything.

"I'll remember that… if I die before you." He meant it to sound light, joking even, but it made my stomach clench. I didn't like the thought of anyone dying, especially not after so many deaths had already happened.

"Don't worry about it," I told him. "You're not going anywhere anytime soon." I sat down next to him, observing our surroundings. It was really pretty, and the fog wasn't quite as thick in the protection of the trees.

"I'm not changing," Derek said after awhile. "I just felt really sick and wanted… to be safe." Not for the first time, I thought about what it would be like to be Derek. In some ways, all of us were alike. Each of the "subjects" of the Edison Group's experiments was scared of being killed, of being something dangerous and unpredictable. Still, Derek seemed to have it the worst at times. If I could learn to master my skills as a necromancer, and if Tori and Simon could master their own skills, we could hide what we were. Derek would always have to run as soon as he thought he was going to change, so that no one would see him turn into the beast he believed he was to become. I don't know any more than he did if his becoming a wolf would ever follow a specific pattern, but until he had an idea of what that pattern would be, he'd live in fear of not being able to get away in time. Changing in front of someone who didn't know his secret. It had to be hard.

"Well, tell me next time." I told him, trying to sound like I was scolding him, even if we both knew better.

"Why?"

"What do you mean, why?" I asked him, curious. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes, and then looked at me.

"I mean, why do you care. Why do you want to be around me when I'm at my worst?"

"First of all, I don't believe you're at your worst when you're changing, or feeling sick because you might begin changing soon. I care because you're my friend, whether you like it or not. I care because it's the right thing to do, and because I know you don't want to hurt people. You've helped me, and I want to return the favour. You don't choose to be this way, any more than I choose to raise the dead. We've got enough people judging us and trying to kill us, without us judging and prosecuting each other." He grunted something in response, but I knew he was thinking over what I had said. Maybe it wasn't what he'd wanted to hear – I think he wanted fuel, something to turn back on me so I'd go away.

Like that would ever happen.

"Simon likes you." My head shot up and I turned to Derek, saw how he was watching me.

"…okay?" I said slowly, not understanding why he was bringing this up. I don't think he really intended to, because he looked as surprised as I felt.

"I just thought you should know." He said casually, shrugging his shoulders. I stood up, a little angry now.

"Thanks, but despite what you apparently think, I'm not so naïve that I haven't noticed. And I think Simon would appreciate it if you let him do his own talking, like you told him to let me do earlier."

"Whatever." Derek looked away, and I couldn't help feeling angry. He had done exactly what he'd set out to do – pushed me away for wanting to help him. Even though I knew that, and should have stayed, I couldn't. I was tired of people acting like I wasn't smart, of people explaining things to me like I was five and needed my hand held. There were some things I understood little about – necromancy, for example, which was probably the most important thing I SHOULD know about – but I wasn't stupid. I knew Simon was interested, and had been for awhile. It seemed Derek knew that as well. This felt suspiciously like a test and I was sure in that moment I had failed.

Well, screw it. I wasn't going to play part in _anyone's _experiment or tests, not anymore.

**A/N**: I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, sooo I'll just go through it and do my usual spelling/grammatical check and then upload it, wait and see what you guys think. I want to sort of stress the fact that even though Derek has been acting differently around Chloe in the books, he's not suddenly completely different and turning into this sweet guy. Of course, I still love him! ^^ But things can never be as simple as they appear. Hopefully I kept things reasonably in character; I'll get the hang of it as I go along with any luck. (I also plan on re-reading the books to get a feel for the characters, even though I just finished them today x3) Thanks for the reviews so far!


	3. Confused Feelings

**A/N**: Thanks so much for the reviews thus far, guys! It's always great to hear what the people reading my work think, it's probably the part I enjoy the most about writing actually. I've got a few things that I've been planning for this story that I hope you guys will enjoy. But hey – no spoilers!

**Disclaimer**: The Darkest Powers books, and all of their characters (unless otherwise stated!) belong to someone far more famous than me.

**Reckoning**_  
EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter III – Confused Feelings

I slammed the door behind me as I re-entered the safe house, and saw Andrew descending the stairs. He stopped and stared at me, looking curious.

"Hello, Chloe." He greeted, resuming his way down the stairs.

"Hello Andrew," I murmured, not paying much attention. After seeing that ghost here a few hours previously, I was leery about Derek and Simon's father's friend. He had brought us to a place where someone our age – someone who also had supernatural abilities – had died. Still, he had provided a place for us to rest, and with food. He also might be able to give us some answers we desperately needed. We didn't have much of an option in whether or not we trusted him.

"Do you know where Simon and Victoria – Tori," Andrew corrected himself, smiling. "Do you know where they are? I have much to discuss with them, and little time." I gazed at him strangely. What could he possibly want with Simon and Tori? He had been strange about them last night, too – talking about how it was so nice to see them together, even though they were far from being an item. I shrugged my shoulders in response to him.

"Last I saw them, Tori was going to have a long bath, and Simon was going to check out your library here. I guess you've got some books on sorcery that he wanted to read." Simon needed to learn incantations to perform spells, something our resident witch _Tori _was lucky enough not to need to do. I think that fact rubbed him the wrong way – being inferior to Tori in any way – so I wasn't surprised that he wanted to learn more incantations to get stronger.

"Then I suppose for the time being, it will have to wait. Tori does not look like a girl who would like her bath interrupted," Andrew added, smiling faintly. I laughed.

"You've got that right," I told him. We stood there awkwardly for a moment before he cleared his throat.

"We have books on necromancy as well that you might enjoy reading. Perhaps you would like to check out our library like Simon?" Though he was mentioning the books on necromancy, I got the feeling he wanted me to be in the library talking to Simon. Maybe it was because I was used to Derek always shoving me towards his brother. First, I was to act as the damsel in distress to get Simon to leave Lyle House to search for their father. He wanted me to talk to Simon about my problems, get Simon to teach me self-defence so I wouldn't be so useless when things got a little dangerous. Just a few minutes ago, he had brought up Simon's all-too obvious crush on me. I guess this was a sign that I had to confront the situation and do something about it. Just what, I wasn't sure.

"Yeah, that would be great. Maybe then I can get some sleep…" I added in an undertone, mostly to myself. After Andrew pointed me in the general direction of where the library was, I headed for it on my own.

Pushing my way through the large double oak doors, I entered the library. It wasn't as large as I had expected, but it still had a vast amount of books on the supernatural filling the bookshelves that lined up along the walls. Simon was sitting on a loveseat at the end of the room, a large hardcover book opened in his lap. He looked up as I came in, and smiled.

"Chloe!" He always sounded so happy to see me. It made me feel guilty that I hadn't been paying much attention to him during all this time. I'd been so focused on us getting out safe, and my concern for Derek, that I had forgotten about Simon. He was really cute – no denying that – and I think I could say that I liked him. He was good to me, he was honest with me, and he was a sweet guy.

I stepped forward and sat down on the loveseat next to him, looking at the book in his lap. It was opened to a page with words I didn't recognize, and I had no doubt in my mind that they were likely in the language I had heard Simon speak his incantation in when I'd first learned of his abilities.

"What's that page say?" I asked him, nodding at it. He smiled at my interest.

"Non-verbal incantations. I thought about what you and Derek had been talking about on the roof before, about how Tori didn't need to say anything to use her powers. I admit," he said suddenly, grinning boyishly. "I was jealous. Still am. So when I uncovered this book about non-verbal incantations, well, I couldn't resist."

"Andrew wants to talk to you and Tori together," I blurted suddenly. I felt stupid for saying that – it might not have been a secret, but maybe Andrew didn't want them to know yet. Simon looked as confused about this as I did.

"Why does he want to talk to the two of us? Shouldn't he be talking to the whole group about what we're going to do? What Derek said this morning was right – we're not here on vacation."

"Maybe he wants to talk to you and Tori about your powers specifically. I mean, I'm not really much use, and Derek… well, he's really strong, and that will definitely be helpful, but we need to be able to fight with our minds as well, right? You and Tori are good for that. Maybe he wants you guys in on some secret plans that use your powers." It made sense, as I said it, and I began to feel my suspicion slip away. We didn't have to question everyone who tried to help us, right? After all, we hadn't questioned each other – and now we were here, working together. Allies. If we hadn't taken the first step to trusting one another, this wouldn't have been possible. Maybe we really did need to trust Andrew.

"Well, he's in for a rude awakening," Simon told me dryly. "I can't do anything with my power that is really useful. I guess its better he finds that out early, though." I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Don't sell yourself short, Simon. Just because you can't cast a spell just by thinking of it, doesn't mean you're a bad sorcerer or that you're not strong." All of us had powers that we couldn't really control the way we should be able to. It's the reason why we'd been taken to the Lyle House in the first place – our powers were awakening too early, and we didn't have the power to control it. Or, so the Edison Group believed. Each of us seemed to be learning – slowly. Simon was no worse off than the rest of us.

"That's why I – why I like you, Chloe." Somehow, I didn't think he meant as just a friend. He had closed the book and put it on the empty space of the love seat on his other side, shifting closer to me. We hadn't been alone much – definitely not in a setting where we felt safe. This was different; it was like the times we'd spent together in the Lyle House, only as far as we knew, we weren't under constant observation.

I knew it was happening before it actually did. Simon had closed his eyes and was leaning in closer, moving his lips toward my own. I had never kissed a boy before, something that now seemed awfully embarrassing. I found myself wishing in that moment that I had more experience. His lips pressed against my own, gently. I felt tingly all over, beginning in my toes and rising up to my face. Just as I felt the kiss was truly beginning, I pulled away. I'm not sure why – I felt angry with myself. Simon looked confused, and disappointed, but he quickly smiled to hide it.

"Sorry," He apologized. "Guess I got a bit ahead of myself." He slid away slowly, putting space between us. I felt bad – I was sure that I had hurt his feelings. I had to say something to explain.

"S-Simon… you're a r-r-really great guy, and I-I-I consider you a good f-f-f-friend…" Great, I was stuttering. He was either going to think I was lying, or nervous as hell. I really needed to get over that bad habit; it was becoming a complete pain. I took a deep breath and tried again. "What I'm trying to say is –"

"You don't like me that way." Simon finished for me. I shook my head furiously.

"No! I'm not saying that at all. I just… I haven't really had much time to think about that. All of this has been happening at once; I'm not sure how I feel about anyone, or how I should feel." I felt like a complete moron, trying to explain this to him. Why couldn't I have just shut my mouth and kissed him? Tori would have. Tori… I wondered if she was really over Simon, or if she had only said that because he had shot her down. I wasn't sure how nice he had tried to be with her about it at first, because I hadn't been at Lyle House then – but afterward, he'd been almost cruel.

Simon was moving closer to me again, but this time he grabbed my hand and held it tightly between both of his. He brushed his lips against the back of my hand, watching me all the while.

"Does that bother you?" He asked me curiously. I shook my head.

"No."

"Do you like it?"

"I d-d-don't k-kn –" He let go of my hand and brushed a strand of hair out of my face.

"Say it slowly," He whispered. Usually, I hated when people tried to help me talk when I began stuttering – but Simon wasn't saying it in a mocking way. He was being gentle.

"I… don't… know." I took my time on each word, making sure they came out clearly.

"Don't you?" He whispered, caressing my face. Was he always so… so… forward?

"No," I responded truthfully. "It doesn't feel bad, but I can't tell you if it feels… good." He sighed and kissed me lightly on the forehead.

"You'll tell me when you figure that out, right?" He asked me teasingly. I knew then that the awkward moments had passed, for which I was grateful. I nodded, smiling.

"Of course." Every time before when he had seemed like he'd wanted to bring up his feelings, some distraction had always come. Thinking back on it now, that distraction almost always seemed to be Derek. I wondered if that might have been in some way coincidental, but shook the thought from my mind. Derek knew Simon liked me – if he didn't want Simon telling me, he wouldn't have blabbed it out himself. Besides, what reason could he have for not wanting me to know? Simon was like his brother, and his very best friend. If anything, Derek should want him to be happy. Maybe that was why he had finally told me for Simon.

"Thanks," Simon said quietly. He looked oddly vulnerable, and I felt bad for not being able to tell him if I could return his feelings now. With everything that was going on, it was the furthest thing from my mind – but somehow, it didn't seem right telling him that. Who knew if there'd ever be another opportunity for this?

"_There_ you are!" We both looked up and saw Tori storming into the library, looking completely annoyed. I shifted away from Simon guiltily, but Tori took no notice of this. Maybe she really was over him. "I've been looking all over for you."

"Did Andrew want to talk to you and Simon now?" I asked, standing up. Tori stared back at me blankly.

"Should he?" She asked me. I frowned.

"If he didn't send you, why were you looking for us?" Simon asked. Tori looked from both of us, and I blushed under her gaze. God only knew what she was thinking – I didn't think I wanted to know.

"It's wolf boy. I think he might have run away."

**A/N**: And this is where I leave off, awful, I know. I'm not sure if I like the interaction in this chapter between Chloe and Simon, I wanted to sort of convey how desperate Simon feels to get his feelings out in the open now, because it's the first time they've had a bit of a break from all the turmoil going on in their lives. But, I'm not a huge Chloe/Simon fan, so writing them was very difficult for me x3 If it was awful, feel free and let me know, maybe I can come back and re-do this chapter xD In the mean time… please review! I hope to have a new chapter out reasonably soon, with any luck.


	4. Runaway Part 1

**A/N**: So far the reception on the last chapter has been good, hopefully that's, ah, a good thing! XD I'm really enjoying working on this story so my updates will probably be on a daily basis until I either get stuck, or get swamped with updating my other fanfictions, something I hope to do now that I know how to upload Microsoft Word documents to this site without it getting clumped together. (A problem I had that made me stop writing for a while.) Thanks for all the reviews, and I hope you enjoy!

**Disclaimer**: The Darkest Powers series does not belong to me.

**Reckoning  
**_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter IV - Runaway Part 1

Tori's words froze me in place temporarily as I stared back at her in shock. It was possible - quite possible, actually - that she had been mistaken. Tori was the _last _person on earth that Derek would have told if he was running away.

I groaned inwardly at the realization that Tori being the last person Derek would want to tell might be precisely why she would know. She wouldn't care if he ran away, but Simon and I - we would.

"What makes you say that?" Simon said quickly, interrupting my thoughts. Tori shrugged.

"I was walking up the stairs and he shoved passed me. He had a backpack strung over his shoulder and he headed out the door. What would _you _think?" Tori retorted, crossing her arms. "I'm not _stupid, _you know, and I really hate– " Whatever she hated, neither Simon nor I gave her the chance to say. Both of us moved toward the entrance to the library and went to the front door. Simon looked at me, his hand on the doorknob.

"You should go find Andrew – tell him what's happened." My response was an ice cold glare, which soon melted to plain shock. Did Simon honestly expect me to just sit here and wait for him to come back, with or without Derek? Yet I reminded myself that Simon and Derek had been looking out for each other longer than me, and that Simon would have a better idea of where Derek might have gone. Maybe he even knew a spell to track him down. I wasn't sure. What good was the girl who saw dead people?

"Right," I muttered. "I'll just go on ahead and find him, then." I hated feeling like I was being ordered around. Still, I knew better than to object - every time I would decide to rebel and not do as I was told, I got into trouble. Before I got to Lyle House, the stunt that landed me there happened because I had skipped class and coloured my hair in the girl's bathroom. Derek told me to stay, I chose _not _to stay, and almost always got attacked or in some kind of trouble. This time, I was going to listen. I couldn't afford not to.

Tori was strolling down the hall behind me, glancing at her nails distastefully before noticing me staring at her.

"What?" She snapped. After I heard the front door close and knew Simon was gone, Tori's gaze softened. "Sorry," She mumbled an apology, stopping in front of me. "I know you're probably worried - though I'm not sure why." Derek was the superhuman werewolf. He could take care of himself - usually. But now, when he was feeling sick because of his change rapidly approaching . . . I wasn't so sure if he could or not. And had he really run off and abandoned us here? I couldn't see him doing that. Something didn't sound right.

The others weren't sure we should trust Tori, either. I wanted to; my inner instincts were telling me that I could, completely. The last time I had doubted her and thought she'd ratted us out, it turned out to be one of the people I thought I could trust most: Rae. My sense of character and my judgment of people didn't seem to be as good as I needed it to be.

"Do you know where Andrew is?" I asked her, beginning to search the first floor for any sign of him. She shook her head, and followed me. "Great," I muttered. "Why does this place seem so empty?" It was creepy. It was supposed to be a safe house of sorts, and Andrew had told us that there were people here that wanted to help others with supernatural abilities. Why was it, then, that we had only seen Andrew so far? Or at least, I had only seen Andrew. I wasn't sure what the others had seen while I was sleeping.

"Did you guys ever see anyone else in this place? Or just Andrew?" I asked Tori, turning down a narrow hallway. She waved my question off.

"Never saw anyone else, but apparently they all came while we were sleeping. Andrew left breakfast early to go talk to them once they'd arrived. It was like they knew we'd be here. Creepy, right? I don't know if there's anyone amongst them with the power of premonitions, but it would make sense if there was." Premonitions… I didn't envy anyone who was cursed with that ability. I found it hard enough seeing dead people wherever I went – seeing the future, and the awful things that happened, wasn't something I wanted.

Then again, if I had the ability to see into the future, maybe I could have seen Derek running off. I could have stopped him… but thoughts like that would get me nowhere. We had to focus on finding Andrew. Surely he would know what to do – why else would Simon have seemed so insistent on me getting to Andrew and telling him what had happened so urgently?

Faintly in the distance I could hear shouting. It seemed to be coming from a hallway that branched to the left of us, so I motioned for Tori to follow. The lighting was dim - there were no windows in this section of the house - and I found myself edging closer to Tori, a little frightened. The last thing I needed was for another ghost to jump out at us.

"Do you hear that?" I asked her, as I tried to make out the words. She nodded.

"Down there," She mouthed, pointing at the door straight ahead of us. There was a thin crack of light to show us that the door was partially open. I edged closer until we were just outside of the door, and listened.

"_So what you're trying to tell us is that the Edison Group planned to kill these so-called "harmless" kids?_" One voice - an older man's, I guessed - cried out. He didn't seem to believe that the Edison Group would harm us if we were harmless. Which naturally meant, he didn't believe we were harmless. Lovely.

"_I'm not_ trying _to tell you anything,_" I heard Andrew say, exasperated. "_I'm informing you of the facts. These kids have been on the run from the Edison Group. We've been waiting for years to have a valid reason to stop them. Blake, haven't you said yourself that you had your doubts about their experiments?_"

"_That may be true, Andrew, but I also recall an important little detail you've been keeping left out: one of them is the result of a union between a Sorcerer and a Witch. Victoria, I believe her name was?" _ I looked at Tori, whose hand was now covering her mouth. I already knew that she was the product of a Sorcerer and a Witch, because of what the demon in my room at the Edison Group facility had told me. Of course, I hadn't known for a fact if the demon had been telling the truth - but I'd had a hunch. This was something Tori's mother clearly never told her.

"Dad," She whispered, tears beginning to form in her eyes. Having a sorcerer for a father meant that the human man she'd thought was her dad, really wasn't. I knew it had to be a hard blow - I thought of my own father, and how much I missed him. He still believed that I'd been kidnapped.

"_She was at the Lyle House because her powers were out of control, and from what we've been told, they weren't getting better._" The man Andrew had called Blake continued. "_I may not like what the Edison Group has been doing - nor do I like their experiments. But they conducted these experiments, and so it is their sole responsibility to do what they see best with their subjects. Why should we risk ourselves for them? What proof other than the word of a bunch of out of control supernatural teenagers, do we have?_"

Weren't we enough proof? They weren't trying to help us. They were lying to our faces! They tried to make us believe we had mental disorders, and if we bought into it, great! We got to go home to our families. If not, we were killed. They knew all along that we had supernatural abilities, and instead of trying to help us control them, they tried to stamp them out of us. Why? We were their experiments, weren't we? Their subjects? Were they so afraid of us that their only solution was to try to turn us into normal humans or murder us?

I looked over at Tori and saw that she was already heading down the hall. Should I stay and eavesdrop more, or follow her? I wanted to stay and see what more these people would say, but at the same time I knew that Tori needed a friend. I was the closest to that she was going to get, whether she liked it or not. Whatever this group was talking about, would have to wait.

* * *

I followed Tori until she spun around and shoved me against the wall, fresh tears flowing freely. I could see the anger in her eyes, but I knew it wasn't directed at me.

"Go away," She seethed, before letting go of me and running up the stairs to where our room was. I followed her, more slowly this time, giving her a few moments alone. She slammed the door shut in my face, and I didn't open it. Instead I turned around and leaned against the door, sinking down until I hit the ground.

I listened as she cried and shouted, heard the crashing sounds as things surely got out of control with her powers. After awhile, I heard her quiet voice at the other side of the door.

"Chloe?"

"I'm here," I told her.

"I think I know why… w-w-why Andrew wanted to talk to Simon and I." I blinked rapidly, impressed. I still had no idea myself, but that Tori had figured it out was a little on the shocking side to me. Still, it hadn't been that long ago that it had come out she was a bit of a computer geek – something I'd have to remember to ask her about at a better time.

"Why?" I asked her cautiously.

"I… I'm the result of a sorcerer's and a witch's union, right? My mother, she was always adamant that I stayed away from Simon. I just thought it was because she wanted me away from all distractions from getting better, but now… Chloe, I think Simon might be my brother."

**A/N**: I actually had something completely different planned for the end of this chapter, but I deleted it because I thought it was lame xP So, this was the new result that came from it. I like it better, personally. Before I had them get found out for eavesdropping on the group, and some other stuff I'm saving for later now happen, but it didn't seem to fit right. Hopefully this chapter is okay. ^^ Don't forget to _**review! **_


	5. Runaway Part 2

**A/N**: So far the reception for the last chapter has been really good, so that's . . . good? =P Thanks so much for the reviews and adding this story to your story alerts =) Much appreciated! Anyway, I'm hoping to make this chapter really good with any luck. Extra long, maybe? We'll see. ^^

**Disclaimer**: The Darkest Powers series does not belong to me.

**Reckoning**_  
EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter V - Runaway Part 2

I stood up and opened the door. Tori was looking up at me with bloodshot eyes and gave a small smile.

"Why would you think that?" I asked her, closing the door behind me and sitting on my bed in the room. She stayed where she was on the floor and pulled her knees up close to her chest.

"Simon's dad's a sorcerer. My – my real dad is also a sorcerer. That Andrew guy was weird about us being together, and even though Simon was quick to explain we weren't a couple, it just . . . seemed like that was never what he meant. My mom was so mad when she found out I had a crush on Simon. Like, really mad. Madder than I've seen her for a long time, actually."

I remembered the conversation between her and her mother that I had overheard - her mom _had _seemed mad at the thought of Tori liking Simon, but I wasn't so sure that this was the reason. Wouldn't her mother have wanted to be more specific? She could have invented a story of being with Simon's dad before, and Tori would have steered clear of him.

Still . . . Andrew _had _acted strange about the two of them. There was definitely more there, something specific, but was it what Tori thought?

"I wouldn't jump to conclusions all the same," I told her, trying to sound reassuring. "I mean, who could possibly know for sure?" One look at her and I could see that it wasn't the idea of Simon being her brother, or half-brother, that bothered her. She had just found out that the man who had raised her as his daughter wasn't her real father. That had to be tough. "Tori . . . your dad is still your dad. Maybe not by blood, but–"

"You don't understand, Chloe. No one wants me. My real father was never in the picture, or else I would have known about him. The guy I thought was my father couldn't even help me when I needed him most. I thought he would understand, but . . . he bought into whatever it is my so-called mother told him. And my mom? You saw for yourself just how much _she _wanted me. She was wishing you were her daughter instead. Simon may or may not be my brother, but before that was even a possibility on our minds, he wanted nothing to do with me. You, on the other hand," She said suddenly, her voice turning more harsh. "You get everything you want and everything you _don't _want. Everyone loves you, no matter how much you screw up. Simon and Derek are tripping over themselves to do whatever it is they can to make you comfortable, and they don't try to hide the fact that they'd both prefer I was dead than here with all of you."

I looked away guiltily. Derek and Simon weren't fond of Tori in the least, and they didn't trust her. Maybe I shouldn't, either - I mean, I was the one that she had tied up and knocked out in a cramped little space. Yet . . . I couldn't help it. She had no one to turn to; how could we turn our backs on her? No matter what anyone else thought, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Not even now, when traces of her old hatred for me were resurfacing.

"Tori, I can't help what others think of you." I said after awhile. "Only you can change their opinions of you, but you don't seem to really want to. Liz liked you, right? You were best friends at Lyle House. I know you think I took her away from you, but–"

"No." Tori interrupted. "I don't think that anymore. She wasn't progressing the way they wanted. It was only a matter of time. You just . . . might have sped it up a little."

"But you let her get to know you. She liked you, Tori. You just need to give us a chance to be able to like you too." She looked down at the floor and began tracing patterns into the carpet. I felt bad for her; I thought of trying to summon Liz here, but what good would that be? It wasn't fair to call Liz here like she was expected to follow my every command, and Liz would have to talk through me in order for Tori to know what she was saying at all.

Suddenly an outburst of shouts could be heard coming from downstairs. Tori stood up and opened the door, and we both quickly ran out to see what the commotion was.

At the bottom of the stairs just in front of the main entrance, Simon was leaning against the doorframe. Blood was leaking through his clothes, and his face looked badly scratched and caked in mud. He mumbled something that we couldn't hear. Tori was frozen in place, but I ran down the stairs just as he fell to the ground.

"Simon!" I cried out, lifting his face with my hands. "What happened?" We were soon joined by Andrew and a few of the other people staying here that he had been talking with earlier. Andrew shouted at someone to grab a first aid kit and then knelt down next to me. "Simon!" I shouted again. He glanced at me for a moment.

"W-w-w-w . . . " He coughed, and his eyelids were beginning to slip down. I knew it wouldn't be long before he'd be out cold.

"Slow down Simon," I coaxed. "Say it slowly." He licked his lips, his eyes closing.

"Wolf." He said in barely a whisper, before he slipped out of consciousness. I felt my heart stop beating. Had Derek changed? Done this to Simon? No, I realized. Derek was afraid of changing, and he didn't know for sure what would happen once he did, but I felt within my very being that he could not do this to Simon no matter what form he was in. Simon was his brother and his best friend. They cared too much about each other. I felt a small sense of relief, but one glance up at Andrew and the others that had gathered around us, I knew that they weren't as sure as I was.

"The one you call Derek has become a threat." One woman said sternly. I glared up at her.

"That's not true!" I shouted. "Derek couldn't have done this to him. I know he didn't." I couldn't let them think of Derek as a threat. He was like . . . our protector. _My _protector. And he wasn't here to defend himself. This was wrong.

"Were you there, then?" An older man sneered at me. I crossed my arms and met his gaze, unfaltering.

"I didn't have to be. I know he wouldn't - no, _couldn't _- have done this. Simon was barely comprehensible. He could have said something else, he could have meant that he saw Derek change . . . but he did not mean that Derek hurt him."

"Maybe he did, Chloe." Tori said gently. "I don't mean to say that he'd want to, but . . . " She reached out to touch my arm, and I pushed her away.

"No!" I screamed. "I don't care what any of you think. Derek . . . he didn't do this." I glanced down at Simon, my eyes trailing over the wound marks that were visible. They were wrong - all of them!

"Regardless, I think its safe to say that we should all stay inside. Whatever it is that got to Simon is still out there." I was grateful that Andrew hadn't implied that it was Derek who had harmed Simon; he was still giving him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe we could trust him after all - at least he wasn't as quick to want to hurt Derek as the others seemed to be. I nodded in agreement - I didn't like having to stay indoors when Derek was still out there with whatever it was that had gotten to Simon, but Derek could take care of himself. He didn't need me blundering about needing to be rescued. Again.

Andrew and another man grabbed Simon and picked him up, carrying him to a room further down the hall on the main level. I guess it was easier to keep him downstairs than it would be to take him upstairs. I wanted to go with them, but I knew they would probably have to strip Simon down to see if there were any other wounds that we couldn't see, and my face heated up at the thought of being there during that. No, I decided. I could see Simon later; he wouldn't know if I was there anyway, and I'd only get in the way.

Tori was watching me with a strange expression on her face.

"What?" I asked her, confused. She smiled and shook her head.

"Nothing, Chloe. And . . . thanks. For the things you said earlier. I'm not saying I like you," She added quickly, as if setting me straight. "But I don't exactly have a lot of people to choose from to be a friend here. I guess you're better than Simon. _Definitely _better than Derek." She made a face as if the mere thought disgusted her, but somehow, I knew she was only joking around. Maybe she didn't think Derek was so bad after all? Or . . . didn't want to hurt my feelings. Both the boys were my friends.

"I'm happy to be the only person left to be your friend here then, I guess." I told her, forcing a smile. I was distracted, thinking about what it was that had attacked Simon. He had said a wolf; did that mean that Derek was nearby? I refused to think of the possibility that the wolf that had attacked Simon was Derek. Derek had told me that wolves were territorial - the werewolves we'd run into before had seemed like it. If he had been nearby, the wolf might have gotten territorial and just gone crazy.

_Derek . . . _I felt uneasy about him being out there alone. But what could I do about it? We were confined to the house. There was no way I could go out after him, not now. I'd have to wait.

* * *

Hours passed. Day slowly faded into night, and Derek still hadn't returned. The hope that he might return was fleeing from me, and Simon had slipped from being unconscious to sleeping.

I was starving. I decided to sneak down to the kitchen and look for something to snack on, anything that might have been in the house. Earlier Andrew had given Tori and I a complete tour of the house, so we now knew where most of everything was. The room that we had overheard them talking in earlier had been the meeting room, and was next to the kitchen. I knew that they were in there now, discussing the situation with Simon - and I admit that my growling stomach might not have been the only contributing factor to making me want to go to look for food.

I headed into the kitchen as planned and opened the fridge. There wasn't much there - Andrew had mentioned needing to go shopping earlier. Still, I grabbed an orange and began peeling it. The taste was overbearing - most of the food that we had managed to scrounge up while on the run hadn't been the most delicious or healthy choice, and I hadn't had an orange for what felt like forever. I put a piece into my mouth and went to walk by the meeting room again, slowing my pace and stopping just outside of it. The door was shut this time - it made me wonder briefly if they knew that Tori and I had overheard them earlier. I pressed the side of my face against the door and listened. Silence. It was odd.

An arm reached out and grabbed me, and I would have screamed if they hadn't put their hand over my mouth. I spun around and saw Andrew standing there, an odd glint in his eyes as he looked at me. He seemed amused.

"Eavesdropping might be a good way to find out information that no one is telling you, but it would have been easier to ask me." He said quietly, guiding me away from the meeting room. I nodded, biting my bottom lip. Was he going to get me into trouble? He didn't look angry, but that hardly meant anything. "They want to hunt Derek down." He told me finally. I pulled away from him angrily.

"What do you mean, _hunt? _He's not an animal!" I exclaimed. Andrew shrugged, looking uncomfortable.

"He sort of is, Chloe. I'm trying to talk them out of it - get them to wait for Simon to explain things properly. As it stands, though, I'm not sure they're willing to wait. If Derek _is _the one who hurt Simon, he could be out there harming others as we speak."

I blinked back tears. I couldn't let them hurt Derek! He'd kept me safe whenever things had gotten tough. Simon usually was more help keeping Derek safe than I would be, but Simon couldn't right now. Tori didn't care enough about either of them to do anything, and Andrew seemed to be all about words. He wasn't going to go outside and risk his life to find Derek. Only I was stupid enough to dare attempt that.

"I want to be alone," I told Andrew finally, trying to sound upset and tired. He nodded in understanding, and I headed up the stairs to the room I shared with Tori.

She was lying back on her bed flipping through a magazine and snorting at things she found amusing. I cleared my throat and she looked up at me.

"What?" She asked, putting her magazine down on her chest. I sat down on the end of her bed, taking a deep breath before responding.

"I need you to cover for me. They're going to look for Derek, and . . . I'm worried about what they'll do." She looked like she wanted to retort something about how I should just let them, but stopped when she saw my face. I'm not sure what exactly it must have looked like, but whatever it was, it made her bite back her remark and nod.

"I'll make sure they think you're here." She said finally. "I don't know how long I can keep it up, but . . . "

"All I'm asking is that you try," I assured her. "As long as it's long enough for me to get far enough away from the house that they can't see me, I'll be fine." Was I being completely stupid? Derek would surely flip out at me for running after him, especially once he found out the reasons. He'd think that running away had been the right thing to do - but it wasn't. We needed him. I kept telling myself that, but I knew if I was being honest with myself, my actions _were _a little selfish. I didn't want him to leave, and I didn't want them to kill him. Not even if he thought they should too.

As I made my way to the door again to try and sneak out, Tori spoke up.

"Chloe? Be careful, okay?" She might as well have cursed me. I seemed to have a rebellious streak in not doing what I was told, but I smiled and nodded.

"Of course." I assured her. Inside, I was worried. I had to be losing my mind to want to leave the safety of this house, but I knew deep down that the safety wouldn't be permanent anyway. Some day soon, we'd have to either run away, or leave to fight the Edison Group. I don't think there was any avoiding that. Maybe it was better to face the danger again while I still had the courage and motivation to do so.

I grabbed a jacket that was too large for me from the coat rack next to the door and made it out of the house without being noticed. That wasn't exactly the hard part - the others always seemed to be cooped up in that meeting room, and I admit I worried about what it was they discussed. I pulled the jacket around me tight. The main reason I had brought it was because if Derek was going to change or had already changed, he might rip out of his clothes during the change if he didn't think to take them off first. And if that happened, it would be cold once he resumed his human shape.

As I continued walking, I ran over in my head the types of places Derek would probably want to be. Somewhere isolated, off to the side and out of sight. If he thought he was going to change, he'd want to be somewhere away from us. That I knew for certain.

Once I saw the border of the forest up ahead, I broke into a run for it. Derek had to be in there somewhere. _Please, be okay. _

**A/N**: I've already got the events for the next chapter sketched out in an outline, so I'll probably have it up tonight. I won't give anything away, but I WILL say that I think you'll like it. I mean, I just had fun writing point form, lame little notes to guide me . . . the real written work should be much, much better. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! It's sort of a filler chapter to get to the next event, but it had to be done. I could have made it longer but figured I'd conclude the running away thing in a third part. Hope you don't hate me too much! Don't forget to review!


	6. Runaway Part 3

**A/N**: WOO, I love when I have a chapter to write that I know I'm going to like. MWAUHAHAHAHA. Hopefully, you guys enjoy it too. ^^

**Disclaimer**: The Darkest Powers series does not belong to me.

**Reckoning  
**_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter VI - Runaway Part 3

I leaned against a tree and bent down to pull my shoe off. There was a small rock or something that had gotten inside of it, and it was driving me crazy to try to walk with it jabbing the center of my foot. I threw the rock off to the side and pulled my shoe back on. That was when I saw the ghost.

She was standing near a small pond up ahead, skipping stones across the surface of the water. I closed my eyes tightly, worried that I might see her death. I was certain that I hadn't summoned her - so what was she doing here? I began to head in the opposite direction from her, not caring whether or not I got lost. I just wanted away from the ghost. I didn't want to have to deal with that right now.

I heard growling, and I stopped. It sounded like a vicious dog, or... _a wolf. _I slowly turned around and saw the girl begin running, and the wolf began chasing her. Somehow, this didn't feel right. I had thought she was a ghost, but the wolf... it had splashed through the water in an all too real way. I heard the girl scream and went to run forward. I had to know, I had to find out if she was just a ghost, or if... she was about to become one.

"I'm coming!" I shouted, beginning to run. I had to have lost my mind. First I went out in the middle of the night, alone, without a flashlight of any kind, to search for Derek. Now I was chasing after a girl that may or may not have been a ghost. If she wasn't a ghost, the threat to her life was all too real, and would soon be chasing after me as well. "Just wait!" I shouted. I felt stupid immediately afterward. Who was I to tell her to wait, when she was running for her life?

I came to an abrupt stop when I saw the wolf staring me directly in the eyes. He tilted his head, and I had the brief thought of _Derek _before arms reached up from behind me and pulled me away. I couldn't look away from the wolf, but I shut my eyes tightly as a medium sized rock was thrown at it. Not to kill, I realized, but to knock it out. I turned around and saw Derek was the one who had pulled me back.

"Derek!" I cried, throwing my arms around him and pulling him into a tight hug. He hadn't looked the greatest - his face was slick with sweat, and I could feel the heat of his body nearly burning me through the fabric of his clothes. He awkwardly put an arm around my shoulders as I stayed like that for a moment, before gently pushing me away.

"I don't know what you're doing out here, Chloe, but you have to go." I stared at him with my mouth open. Did he honestly expect me to leave him here after all the trouble I'd gone through to find him?

"No." I told him stubbornly. "I don't have to go anywhere, and I'm not going to." I could see the pain in his eyes as he tried not to let on like he was soon going to go through the change. Whether he'd complete it this time or not, neither of us would know until it happened.

"Don't... be stubborn." He told me. I put my hands on his shoulders and began pushing him back.

"No, _you _don't be stubborn! I'm not about to leave you here. I... I came out here for a reason." How could I tell him that his brother had been attacked and that the people who were supposed to be keeping us safe believed he did it? That wasn't something you dumped on a guy running away from his problems. It was just more fuel to convince him to keep running.

He grabbed my hand and began running, catching me off guard. Thankfully, he ran slow enough that I could keep up with his long strides, but it was still uncomfortable. I didn't know what had brought this on so suddenly, but there was no time to ask. I could barely breathe as we ran through the trees and away from—

Oh. Right. The wolf. Surely we were far enough away by now that it wouldn't keep chasing us? Derek had said that wolves didn't traditionally attack unless they felt in danger.

"Derek, Derek – Derek stop!" I shouted when he ignored me. He came to a stop suddenly and I slammed into his back hard. I could feel his muscles writhing under the material of his shirt and I quickly began to pull it up. He turned around and grabbed my hands.

"What are you _doing?_" He hissed.

"You're going to change soon and we're too far away for you to get a spare set of clothes." I told him, pulling my hands free from his. He frowned. I could tell that he didn't like that I was so... _okay _with the thought of him changing. I should be terrified. Screaming, running away like we had just done from that wolf that he had stunned with the rock.

"Fine," He muttered, pulling his shirt off. "But I can do it myself." I looked closely and saw the faint trace of a blush scattered across his face. I smiled. Derek, embarrassed? There was a sight you didn't see every day.

I looked anywhere but at him as he continued undressing down to his shorts. I grabbed his clothes from the ground and put them somewhere where they wouldn't get too dirty. I turned back to him and stared strictly at his face. He was in obvious pain, trying to resist the change. Suddenly his face began to morph into something inhuman and he turned, vomiting in the bushes. I cringed, but not out of disgust. I walked up to him and put my hand on his shoulder. His muscles were convulsing beneath my palm, but I paid no attention to it. I did what I had done for him before when he had almost changed – I rubbed the space between his shoulders, massaging it as his muscles stretched. He knelt down on the ground and I knelt down with him, leaning against his back and hugging him for a moment.

"It'll be okay," I promised him. "You'll be okay." I rubbed his shoulders again as the fur began to sprout from his back, it's texture rough on my hands. He groaned and cried out, throwing his head back as his jaw lengthened into a muzzle. I heard once more the noise of his bones popping, and listened to his agonized cries. I continued rubbing his shoulders and whispering reassuringly to him. Suddenly, his muscles stopped convulsing, and he looked at me, his face part wolf, part man. He looked ashamed and afraid, and I wanted to erase those feelings from his mind.

"Wolves are pretty majestic," I said suddenly, stroking his back gently. "I've always thought they were beautiful." Derek turned to look at me and I saw some of the fear and shame disappear from his eyes. I ran my hands down his arms, but a growling noise from behind us immediately made us both stand. Derek quickly pulled me behind him, placing himself between the wolf and me.

The wolf had tracked us and found us here. Why? Was it another werewolf like Derek? Or was it just a regular wolf? I had no time to ask Derek, and I wasn't sure he could even answer in his current form. Derek was growling back at the wolf in response, as though they were trying to intimidate one another. The wolf leaped toward us and in a flash Derek began to complete his change, the rest of his body morphing into the shape of a large grey wolf. I cringed as I heard the rest of his bones pop, and I wondered if there would be any permanent damage from his change. Did he just transform as if by magic, or did his body have to rearrange internally to match the shape of a wolf? It was a thought I didn't want to think about.

Derek leaped forward in his wolf form and knocked the other wolf back. They snarled in each others faces, snapping their teeth at one another's necks. I was worried that Derek would get hurt, but there was no way I could interfere in this at all.

The fight between them felt as though it was lasting forever. I could see small spatters of blood fly occasionally, but I had no way of knowing who it belonged to. It was awful, only being able to stand and watch as the two fought. _Derek… _

Derek finally pinned the wolf down and snarled in it's face. He let the wolf go, and with a final howl, the wolf ran off the way it had come, never stopping, and never turning around for one final glance in our direction.

Derek went to make his way over to me when suddenly something flew through the trees and went into him.

"Derek!" I screamed, running toward him as he collapsed to the ground. I looked at his shoulder blade and saw a tranquilizer sticking out of it. I pulled it out of him and threw it down to the ground, wrapping my arms around his wolf-form. "Derek, stay with me, okay?" I pleaded.

"I told you the girl would lead us to him. She was too quick to jump to his defense – I bet she knew all along where he was." I turned and saw the man that had doubted me earlier when I said Derek wouldn't harm Simon. He was the one holding the tranquilizer gun, a smug look on his face. If I wasn't so determined to stay by Derek to make sure that they didn't do anything else to him, I might have smacked him.

"And _I _told you to leave that filthy thing at home! Derek is a _teenager_ and you're treating him like an animal." Andrew retorted, emerging from the dark. The man turned on Andrew, shoving him against a tree.

"Look at him, Andrew. He _is _an animal!" The man hissed. He let go of Andrew and went to advance toward Derek, but I forcefully pushed him away.

"No!" I screamed. "You're wrong. Derek didn't hurt Simon. There was another wolf that ran down that way – Derek protected me from it. He only just changed a few minutes ago – for the _first _time. He hasn't changed before that. You can't do this to him when he's completely under control of himself. It's inhumane!" Andrew knelt down next to me, examining Derek to be sure he wasn't hurt. It was hard to tell in this form, but I was sure that Andrew knew what he was looking for.

"You're sure he only just recently changed?" Andrew asked me casually, as though we were talking about the weather or something equally trivial. I nodded.

"Absolutely positive. I was here when he changed."

"You were here?" The man with the tranquilizer gun boomed incredulously. "With him as he changed?"

"Yes," I snapped. "He's not the monster you all seem to want to make him out to be. He has a power just like the rest of us, and it wasn't his choice. He's just… a scared kid." If he could understand me now in the groggy state he was in, I knew that he would get angry at me for that comment.

Andrew pulled the man off to the side, and they had a conversation in hushed voices. I couldn't make out what they were saying, and to be honest, I didn't care to. I stroked Derek's back, feeling the fur between my fingers. He began to change back – I wasn't sure if he was trying to, if it was the stress from the fight, or if the tranquilizer had some sort of effect on him. I pulled off my jacket as he resumed his human form and I draped it over him.

"Thanks," He murmured, his voice still rough. "You need it more than I do, though." I realized in that moment that his clothes were still off to the side where I had placed them, and I blushed, feeling the heat rise from my neck into my cheeks. I scrambled to go grab them and handed them to him.

"H-h-here." I stuttered. "Y-y-your cl-cl-clothes." He took them gratefully and pulled them on, wincing in pain as he stood up. "Are you… okay?" I asked him, worriedly. He gave a quick nod of his head, but I didn't believe him. He seemed to notice this and sighed.

"My entire body is sore, but… I think I might have done something to my ankle." He sat down once his pants were on, and I grabbed his foot to see if it was swollen. The ankle was rapidly bruising and beginning to swell. I gently touched the swelling and he cried out in pain.

"Sorry!" I apologized quickly. "It's bruising and swelling quickly. I don't think you should walk on it."

"What's bruising?" We heard Andrew ask, coming back from his private conversation with the man who had shot at Derek. The man was walking away – I hoped that meant he was leaving us.

"My ankle," Derek told him, gesturing at it with his hand. "I hurt it while changing. Or running. I'm not really sure which." He tried to sound like it was no big deal, but I could hear the off-sound in his voice that indicated he was really in a lot more pain than he wanted to let on. Andrew sighed and helped Derek up. He supported Derek's weight from the one side, and I stood up to take the other. We walked like that for awhile, not speaking. We were only focused on making sure that Derek wasn't hurting his ankle more, though every now and then he would have to put too much weight on his ankle and cry out. Finally, he asked us to stop.

"I don't… think I can walk on my ankle anymore," He said, clenching his teeth. I looked down and saw the swelling popping out from his shoe. It didn't look good. I wondered briefly if Derek had ever mentioned anything about werewolves healing faster – if they didn't, he wouldn't be able to move around for quite awhile.

"Alright, Chloe, why don't you go ahead and get he–" Andrew began.

"No." I interrupted him. I still wasn't sure I trusted Andrew, even if he had helped us. How could we know for sure that he hadn't told that guy to come back with the tranquilizer gun and knock Derek completely out this time? Or that they wouldn't just kill Derek while I was gone? No, I had to be the one to stay with him. I didn't voice my complete doubts, but I think Andrew sensed them anyway.

"Okay, I can go get help then." Andrew said, nodding. "I'll be back soon." He dashed off, leaving me with Derek. I looked around for a spot that looked comfortable to sit and saw a grassy area next to a small pond beneath a large tree. I helped Derek over there – it was much slower without Andrew, and more painful for Derek – and we both sat down, leaning against the tree. I looked up at the sky as I heard thunder rumbling in the not too far distance, and I wrapped my arms around myself, trying not to let Derek see me shiver. He'd give up the coat in an instance and that was not why I had brought it.

It didn't matter that I was trying to hide the fact that I was shivering; Derek noticed. He hesitated, as if trying to figure out what he should do. This was probably not his area of expertise – I was sure nothing with girls really was. Finally, he pulled off the jacket I had brought him and placed it over our laps like a blanket. I moved closer to him and he wrapped his arm around me stiffly.

I reached down and pulled Derek's shoe off his swollen ankle; it probably was so tight that it hurt. Then I glanced back at him and asked the question that had been on my mind since I'd found out about it: why had he run away?

"It doesn't matter." Derek said quietly, trying to dodge the question. "Forget it, okay? I'll go back." I shook my head.

"No, I will not forget it." I told him. "Please, Derek, I want to know. Why did you run away?" Derek looked at me, seeming to be debating whether or not he should tell me. Thankfully for my curiosity's sake, he decided to tell me.

"I… didn't want to hurt any of you, because of what I am." He admitted slowly. "You were insisting that you be there when I changed, something I don't think even Simon has the guts to do. If Simon doesn't think he could handle it… well… I guess I thought you must be delusional to think you could."

"Thanks," I responded dryly. He shrugged his shoulders.

"You're a nice person, Chloe. Too nice. I thought you were just concerned that I'd feel like an outsider, like… an animal. But that's just it – I'm both of those things and more. You can't stop me from feeling that way, because it's what I am." He looked away from me then, not meeting my eyes. He sounded so sad.

"I know you won't hurt us, Derek." I whispered. "I knew it the moment I first saw you start to change before – and you proved it tonight. _You _are in control, not… not the animal you become." Awkward silence followed. I rubbed my hands together to try and warm them; rain was falling now, though thankfully the trees protected us from getting wet. Derek grabbed my hands between his own and held them tight, trying to transfer some of his body's heat into them. It seemed… almost sweet. I looked up at his face, staring at him as he watched my hands.

I noticed, not for the first time, that he was finally being cut some slack and beginning to look really good. I couldn't be the only one who had noticed, could I? The distinctive lines around his jaw, the brilliance of his green eyes… he almost seemed like a different Derek. He looked up at me suddenly, and I flushed, looking away immediately.

"What's wrong?" He asked me gently. I looked back at him reluctantly, and saw that he looked worried. Typical Derek. At least he didn't know that I had been staring at him, thinking about how much more attractive he looked now. He was completely oblivious to the fact that anyone would want to do that with him.

"N-n-nothing." I silently cursed my stuttering. It was no secret that I only did that if I was lying or nervous. Usually lying meant I was _also _nervous, but I guess that didn't really matter.

Derek was still watching me curiously when I turned my gaze back to him. He looked like he wanted to say something, but whatever it was, he decided against it.

I couldn't begin to explain the strange sensation I felt in that moment. It was something I'd had a taste of on a few rare occasions, but never quite to this extent. I didn't recognize it, I couldn't place it. It had something to do with Derek – it always happened when he was around. I suddenly felt the inexplicable urge to lean in toward him, and I found myself compelled to listen to that urge. He hadn't seemed to notice yet; he was lost in thought, about whatever it was he had decided against telling me.

Harsh reality struck me as I realized what the urge I had was; to _kiss _him! Derek. Kiss… Derek? This was wrong, it wasn't the way things were supposed to work out. Derek could barely stand me, though he seemed like I didn't bother him as much _now _… probably because I was the only person he knew of that didn't mind being around him when he changed, or when he was going to change.

I realized I was still leaning in toward him, and I quickly pulled back before he noticed. Too late. He stared at me, confusion and wonder in his eyes, and opened his mouth to speak when we suddenly heard Andrew calling us.

"Over here!" I shouted, desperate to avoid the conversation Derek looked ready to start. I needed time to sort out my thoughts; I must have been losing my mind, it was the only explanation. I snuck a glance at Derek quickly before helping him up to his feet.

"Lift your foot – the one without a shoe," I added. Derek did as I asked, and I helped him put the shoe back on, making sure that it wasn't too tight. It would still be uncomfortable for him, but it would have to do for now. Andrew shined a flashlight in our eyes before lowering it.

"I brought the van; it's just on the edge of the trees over there." We both supported Derek as we made our way to where Andrew had parked; walking once again in complete silence, though my mind was full of endless thoughts.

**A/N**: And that's where I end it, mwauhahahahaha. This is my longest chapter yet, I believe, since I really enjoyed working on it and knew where I was going with it. My plot sketch actually has a few more things to put in, but this seemed like a good spot to end it, and I wanted this uploaded before I had to get changed to go to school this morning – so voila! Thanks for all the people who have reviewed, added this story to their story alert and/or to their favourites. Don't forget to review! ^^


	7. Decision

**A/N**: Sorry that I didn't update the past two days, I've been busy with some personal things that kept me from the computer. I have the day off tomorrow from school though, so I'll have all day to work on chapters! I might not upload them all to the site; I may save them for a day when I run out of time to write again (which will be good xP).

**Note about Chloe & Derek**: They're not together – _yet_. I never make things as simple as they appear, so there's still a rollercoaster ride ahead. This IS a Chloe and Derek story, though, despite the Simon/Chloe scenes I will throw in to make it more realistic (and interesting xP).

**Note about Chloe & Simon**: This fanfiction will not have them be together in the end, I am sad to say for those few Chloe and Simon fans out there. HOWEVER, I want to continue writing stories for this category, so if you would have an interest in more Chloe and Simon stories, I will consider trying to write a few, despite not really liking this pairing _at all_, so that there will be more on the site. So if you're interested in that, review and tell me! Or send me a PM if you'd prefer!

**Disclaimer**: Darkest Powers does not belong to me.

**Reckoning**

_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter VII – Decision

We made it back to the van after a few minutes of stumbling in the darkness, trying to keep Derek from putting weight on his foot. I voiced my concern, saying we should take Derek to a hospital, but Andrew assured me that it would heal as long as Derek stayed off it and put ice on it as soon as we got back to the safe house to bring down the swelling.

I knew that going to the hospital had never really been an option anyway; it was too risky, with us on the run. We'd need to provide identification, and that identification would be our ticket straight back to the Edison Group.

Then again, Andrew seemed determined that we help him and the others get back to the Edison Group. If we were just going to end up back there anyway, I'd rather one of my friends got whatever medical attention they might need in the process.

Medical attention reminded me of Simon's diabetes, and I wondered if they would be able to get him the insulin he needed. I made a mental note to mention it later.

I caught Derek glancing at me from the back where he was stretched out, and I felt blood rush to my cheeks. I had been trying not to think about what had almost happened earlier, but I knew it was impossible to avoid for long. I had to confront the situation at least in my own head and work out what had happened. Or almost happened. Yet deep down, I knew I wasn't going to do it now. I wanted to forget anything had ever happened that was questionable, and I wanted to just go on the way we had been before. It was complicated enough with Simon liking me; if I liked Derek instead of Simon, what would that do to the two brothers? Would it put them against each other? Only if Derek returned my feelings, I suppose – he couldn't help how _I _felt, if I did like him. Still, I didn't want to do that to them. Derek needed Simon. Apart from Simon, I was his only potential friend. If Simon was angry at him and Derek had to stay away from me to try and make things better, it would leave him completely alone. I couldn't do that to Derek, not when he was finally just starting to open up and act more sociable.

And so, I decided that if I did have any feelings for Derek, I was going to ignore them. Maybe it wasn't fair, but what about my life _was _fair? I was starting to get used to the injustice of life.

* * *

We arrived back at the safe house in a few minutes; it took no time to get back when driving. I got up to open the door as Andrew helped Derek inside. I was grateful that none of the other supernatural people were there waiting for us. I didn't want to have to put up with their arguments against Derek's presence there, and he didn't deserve that after all he'd been through tonight. Tomorrow, we'd work everything out and either help them fight back against the Edison Group, or leave.

Derek cried out in pain, despite his efforts to muffle the sound, and I remembered that he wouldn't be able to walk anywhere for awhile. We couldn't afford to leave; and there was still Simon, who I had yet to tell Derek about. I decided that now was probably as good a time as any.

"Derek," I murmured, moving to kneel next to the couch he was now lying on. "I have to talk to you. It's… about Simon." Derek didn't look surprised; was it possible he had seen the wolf attack Simon? I continued anyway, when Derek remained silent. "Tori told us that she had seen you leaving. Simon decided to go look for you, so I went to tell Andrew that he was gone." I looked around to see if Andrew was still in the room; he didn't seem to be, but I decided that the bit about Simon and Tori possibly being siblings could wait until later when we had more privacy. It wasn't really any of my business, and so it wasn't for me to tell.

"Tori actually told you I left? I'm impressed," Derek retorted, laughing lightly. I smiled. It had been a bit strange, but Tori wasn't as bad as we'd originally thought. Actually, she was starting to grow on me – a little. I'm sure I'd change my mind at least temporarily during her next temper tantrum or attack, but for now, I could live with her.

"Yeah, she did. But… Simon came back after awhile, and he was hurt. I think that wolf that you and I encountered earlier attacked him. But everyone else thought that he meant you, because he passed out before he could explain, and that's why they were shooting tranquilizers at you." I bit my bottom lip, waiting for Derek's reaction. His expression was unreadable; this had been exactly why he'd wanted to run away, to avoid something like this happening. Would this fuel him to run off again?

"I want to see Simon." Derek said finally. I shook my head.

"You can't go anywhere on that foot right now. If you walk on it, the swelling will get worse. You could do permanent damage."

"I want," Derek repeated again, clenching his teeth, "to see my brother." He had his usual determined look in his eyes, and I sighed. There was no way we could take Derek to see Simon on that foot. I had to find a way to make a deal with Derek.

"Tell you what," I told him. "We'll put ice on your ankle – and _keep it there _for awhile." I added more sternly. "I'll check on Simon, and let you know how he's doing. And I promise, after you've had ice on your foot for awhile, I will help you to where Simon is and you can stay there. But _not _until the swelling has gone down a bit." He stared at me looking defiant, but then sighed, giving in.

"Fine. You know, I think I liked you better when you hated me. You wouldn't have cared if I jumped around and tried to do somersaults with my ankle injured then." I gave a small start, but then realized he didn't think I liked him _that _way – he just knew I didn't hate him the way I seemed to when we first met.

I left him there to go get him some ice from the kitchen, but as I made my way toward it, intoxicating scents reached my nose, making my stomach growl. I poked my head in and saw Tori was cooking something on the stove. I stared open-mouthed in shock.

She noticed me standing there and stopped what she was doing.

"I thought you guys might have been hungry since you missed dinner," She explained, and I was surprised to realize that she meant Derek and I. Cooking for me? That was a shock. Cooking for _Derek_? That was a full out miracle.

"Oh, right." Dinner. "Thanks, Tori. That's… really sweet of you." I was still staring at her a bit suspiciously, which she seemed to notice. She crossed her arms and frowned.

"Don't sound so surprised. I mean, I didn't want to eat earlier without you guys so I'm hungry too." I smiled; Tori was still thinking about herself for the most part, but it was nice that she waited for us to get back before eating. I wasn't even sure if she could cook, but I was hungry enough that I was willing to find out.

I brushed past her and opened the freezer to grab an ice pack. I brought it back to Derek and held it on his ankle for him.

"Tori is making us something to eat," I told him. "For dinner."

"I'm not hungry," He said, just as his stomach growled. I laughed, and put his hand on the ice pack beneath mine.

"Hold that there; I'll go check on Simon. _Don't _try and do anything stupid." It felt nice to be able to say that to him, for a change; usually he was the one telling me to stay, to not do anything stupid, and to do as he said. I admit, I felt a little smug about the role reversal. This sort of thing didn't happen often, so I needed to take advantage of it while it lasted.

I left him lying there holding ice to his swollen ankle as I went to find Simon. I felt bad that I hadn't been more concerned about him in the first place, but there was no going back to fix that now. I saw Andrew reading a book in the other room and asked him where Simon was. He told me Simon was now in the room he shared with Derek, so I made my way up the stairs to see him.

Opening the door, I saw Simon lying on the bed. He was still pretty rough looking, but his wounds had been for the most part patched up and cleaned. I sat on the side of his bed, because I knew he was awake. He opened one eye and looked to see who I was, before trying to sit up.

"H-hey." He greeted.

"Hey, Simon. How are you feeling?" I observed the rest of the wounds that were visible; none looked all too serious, but I knew he had a thick gash on his leg because I remembered seeing it bleeding through his pants before.

'I'm okay, I guess. Is Derek?..."

"He's downstairs," I assured him. "I… went after him after you came back. They thought he was the one who attacked you, and…" I trailed off. Did Simon believe Derek had attacked him? How long exactly had he been conscious? Long enough to explain to them? If that was the case, why had they shot the tranquilizer at Derek at all? And if he thought Derek attacked him… what sort of faith did he have in his own brother?

"No!" Simon cried out suddenly, straightening out. He winced and grabbed his leg, and I was sure that he had hurt the gash that was there. "Derek didn't… didn't do anything. I never made it to him. I… I failed him." He looked miserable at this thought and looked away. I put my hand over his.

"No," I told him firmly. "You didn't fail Derek at all. You tried to do what was right, and Derek's back."

"No thanks to me," Simon muttered darkly. He looked up at me then, a strange look in his eyes. "Why were you so determined to go after him anyway?" He asked me. His voice sounded almost suspicious, and I wondered briefly if he might have been jealous. Derek and I had been spending a lot of time alone together lately, and I know that Simon probably didn't like that. Not because he considered Derek competition – I'm sure he probably didn't, at least not at first – but because he wanted to be able to spend that time with me. Not once since we had been in the Lyle House had we really had a chance to be alone together to just hang out. As friends, or on a date… none of that. I was grateful for that, because it meant he had to put off telling me his feelings for quite awhile.

"Same reason I was determined that someone went back out to find Tori when we were at Andrew's, and the same reason I was determined to get insulin to you when I thought you might die without it. You're my friends. So is Derek. We all need each other, whether we like everyone or not. I couldn't let Derek run away, and I couldn't let everything you'd try to do be in vain." It sounded like a logical enough explanation, even if I knew it was something I was just making up spur of the moment. I'd wanted to go after Derek because I was scared for him. Simon couldn't know that, couldn't know that I might have any feelings for his brother at all. I had to do what both brothers wanted: be with Simon. I liked Simon. I hadn't had as much of a chance to get to know him as I'd like to have, and I made up my mind in that moment that I would spend more time with him in the days to come. I'd been spending so much time with Derek, it was no wonder I was confused about him. All of this would pass in no time, and things would return to the way they were supposed to be. I had enough confusion in my life without causing more for myself.

"You're a good friend," Simon whispered, stroking the back of my hand with his index finger. "And a good person." I blushed from his compliment, looking away. It was uncomfortable for me that people thought highly of me at all.

"Derek wants to see you," I said, avoiding the compliments. "I told him I'd check on you first; he sprained his ankle tonight and it's pretty swollen. Not life threatening by any means, but he shouldn't be on it much. After he's had some ice on it for a bit, I told him I'd help him up here. He'll explain everything that happened and you guys can… talk."

Would they talk about me? Would Simon tell Derek how he had finally told me the feelings he had? Would Derek be surprised, hurt… angry? Or would he be happy, congratulate Simon for finally speaking up. I didn't know; I couldn't know. I had to put all thought of that out of my mind completely and forever.

"Sounds like a plan." Simon pulled my hand to his lips and kissed it gently. I kissed him on the forehead and told him I would be back later.

Despite my efforts to try to make things simpler, it seemed that within me, it was getting more and more confusing.

**A/N**: Not that grand, I'm not sure I like it at all, but I needed something to take me in a certain direction since I've got a few new ideas for this fanfiction I want to incorporate into it. Thanks for all the reviews! Oh, and just a book recommendation from me since I'm going to re-read this series, you should check out The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. The series is very, very good, I love it to death.


	8. Shattered Heart

**A/N**: Just to give the heads up, I have two projects I have to catch up on in my Writer's Craft class that I missed awhile back when I was home sick for a week, so I may have slow updates depending on how much work is required for them. Not a lot, really, just an essay and an editorial which I'm pretty quick at, but I like to keep people informed about any potential obstacles that may come up with my updates if I can. Thanks for all the reviews so far, they mean the world! I'm starting a new story for this category, but it won't be posted for awhile.

**Disclaimer**: Darkest Powers does not belong to me.

**Reckoning**

_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter VIII - Shattered Heart

I returned downstairs and found Derek where I had left him which was, of course, no surprise. He looked up at me expectantly, and I did not leave him hanging.

"Simon seems fine," I began, taking care with my words. "A bit beat up and sore, but far from dying. You don't need to worry." I assured him. He stared at me long after I'd stopped speaking. I felt uncomfortable under his gaze, yet I could not break free from it. Finally, Derek looked away. He seemed deep in thought. My decision was weighing heavily upon me. I knew Simon would eventually bring up the topic of his feelings for me to Derek; the question was, would I rather I brought it up myself first? I didn't know.

"Derek..."

"Yes, Chloe?" Again his bright eyes were on me, inquisitive. He leaned forward a little. I took a deep breath.

"You... said before that Simon liked me. How long have you known that?" I bit my bottom lip nervously. It wasn't exactly what I had meant to ask, but at least it brought the topic up. Derek's expression changed and he pulled himself a bit further from me.

"Long enough." He responded briefly. His eyes caught mine for just a moment, and though I knew it couldn't be true, I thought I saw pain in them.

"He told me himself earlier," I blurted. Derek's head shot up, but whatever emotions he was feeling were hidden behind an emotionless mask. He said nothing. "I... told him I needed time to figure out how I felt."

In that moment, I saw only Derek. Him protecting me from the other werewolves, completing his change and fighting off the wolf that threatened my life. Me, leaning in to kiss him as we huddled together for warmth.

I had to forget about all of that. It burned within, but there was nothing I could do. I looked up at Derek, who was watching me, a mix between hope and fear etched across his face. What was it he hoped for? What was it he feared?

"Have you... decided, then?" He asked finally, his voice barely more than a whisper.

"Yes," I murmured. He moved closer to me, only a few inches away now.

"And?..." He prodded. I didn't know why, but I couldn't look at him as he waited for a response.

"I want to be with him."

Silence. Heart shattering silence. I refused to look at Derek, couldn't bear to see the joy that was surely on his face. Neither of us spoke. It wasn't until Tori came in that I broke from my daze at all.

"Dinner is served, and you _better _be gratef—" She stopped suddenly mid-sentence and saw the expressions on our faces, before saying, "_Whoa._"

'Whoa' was right. I suddenly had no appetite, despite being hungry earlier. My admission to Derek had finalized something I hadn't wanted to accept; hadn't been ready to accept. I couldn't be around him now.

As I stood up, I noticed Derek walking toward the stairs, struggling because of his foot. I wanted to ask where he was going, but I couldn't find my voice. Tori seemed to be wondering the same thing, thankfully.

"And just where do you think _you're _going?" She demanded, putting her hands on her hips. Derek turned on his good foot to face her.

"I'm not hungry," He told her. I knew that was a lie; I had heard his stomach growling earlier from hunger. Tori threw her hands up in the air exasperated and looked at me.

"_You're _hungry, right?" She asked hopefully. She had been nice enough to wait for us to get back before eating; and nice enough to actually cook something _for _us. Derek had already shot her down, and I couldn't do the same thing. I nodded with a forced smile on my face.

"Of course," I responded. I looked back up at Derek who had been watching me, waiting for my response. He immediately looked away and began making his way back up the stairs. I frowned; he wasn't supposed to put weight on his foot like that, but I knew he was beyond listening to me.

I followed Tori into the kitchen, even though I wasn't hungry anymore. I needed all the strength I could get.

* * *

As I lay in bed that night, I thought about the decision I had made. Did it mean that I couldn't be there for Derek when he changed anymore? I suppose it would have to mean that. Now that he had already changed once, it shouldn't be as difficult the next time, or the time after that. Maybe even Simon would be able to go with him.

Simon… I guess tomorrow I would tell him that I returned his feelings. In many ways, I did, and I wanted to be excited about it. I'd never really dated anyone before; and while on the run, the opportunity to be with someone just hadn't been a huge priority. We'd been running for our lives. Here, where we felt safe – at least for a little while – things were different.

In order for one door to open, another had to shut. I was sad that the door had shut on the possibility of a world where I was with Derek, but did I really ever want to be with him? Despite how different he was now, was that what I wanted – to be with a guy I had once feared, who was rude, who hurt me? Simon had seemed to like me for a long time, he was always nice. Maybe I hadn't made the wrong choice.

No more thinking of Derek, not even when I saw him. From now on and forever, I was shutting the door on that possibility. Life with Derek was now an alternate reality neither he nor I would ever know. I liked Simon, and I wanted to be with him.

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, Andrew came in to talk to us. I felt uneasy at his presence; it was a reminder that we were still in danger, a reminder I wanted desperately to forget.

"The rest of the supernaturals staying here have agreed that they would like to arrange a meeting with you kids." Andrew began, putting his hands on the table and leaning against it. I frowned, looking to see the others expressions. Simon, who was sitting next to me, squeezed my hand reassuringly and gave me a small smile. He tilted his head at me as if to say, it'll be fine. I smiled back.

"What exactly do they want to know?" Derek asked, straight to the point. Andrew sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"First, they want to know that you're not a threat. Not just you Derek," Andrew added when Derek opened his mouth to protest. "All of you. You're experiments that the Edison Group couldn't control; the failed experiments. There's no telling what you might be capable of. If they decide you're not a threat to us, one of the first things they'll insist on is that you go through the proper training so you don't endanger us AND yourselves."

Training. It sounded exciting. Did that mean they'd bring a necromancer who could teach me about summoning spirits?

"First, I'd like to speak with Simon and Tori alone," Andrew told us softly, looking meaningfully at them both. Simon looked at him confused; Tori wasn't surprised. She stood up, pushing her chair back, and stood next to Andrew.

"Let's get this over and done with." She sighed, crossing her arms. Simon glanced at me and kissed me on the top of my head.

"Be back soon," He murmured against my hair. I nodded numbly; I didn't want to be left alone with Derek, but I knew that this time would come. I just wish I would have been somewhere else when it did.

They both left the room following after Andrew. I glanced down at my scrambled eggs and poked them with my fork.

I couldn't resist looking up at Derek, if only for a moment. His face once more was expressionless; I hadn't realized how much he'd been letting me see until I saw the mask he always had come back.

He looked up at me as if feeling my gaze, and I looked away. We'd only just become friends and now, if I didn't want to hurt his relationship with Simon, that had to end.

Life really sucks sometimes.

**A/N**: I felt really bad for Derek in this chapter, especially at the beginning when he started to seem more confident with Chloe and suddenly she just shot him down. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter! Sorry it's kind of short, I'm re-reading the SWEEP series by Cate Tiernan and I kind of wanted to get this chapter out and then get back to the book XD Don't forget to review!

* * *

**EDIT:**

**PLEASE READ:  
THIS IS NOT A SIMON/CHLOE STORY.  
NEVER HAS BEEN, NEVER WILL BE.  
Read my past authors notes; and read this one.  
It explains it all, as I have from the start. **

Before I get another review about this seeming an awful lot like a Simon/Chloe story, I will direct your attention to the note titled "**Note about Chloe & Derek****" **and the note titled** "****Note about Chloe & Simon" **in the last chapter. Or my other authors notes in previous chapters, both in the beginning of each chapter and the end. I have made it very clear from the beginning that this is NOT a story about Simon and Chloe; this is my version of The Reckoning, and no matter how much die hard Derek/Chloe fans (like myself, I might add!) will dislike it, there will likely be at the very least some Simon and Chloe action in the book. It is inevitable because Chloe believes that they are already progressing to that dating stage in the actual books. This, and ONLY THIS, is why I have bothered to incorporate this into the fanfiction I am writing. This is, and always will be, a story for Derek and Chloe. That has not changed, it's not going to change. If you don't want to read the Simon and Chloe moments that will follow until Chloe realizes her true feelings more completely (and realizes Derek's!), I cannot and _will not _stop you. That's your choice, completely. I, on the other hand, like reading things with more conflict and struggle. I find it really lame when after five thousand words in a span of eighteen chapters these two get together. Everyone else has done it too quick from the bit I've had a chance to glance at, and I want to be different. If you don't like that different style, I'm sorry, but it's how I write. If for any reason you decide that my decision to make Chloe choose to be with Simon _temporarily _(though she doesn't realize it's temporary herself!) until she works things out for herself, was wrong, you're more than welcome to stop reading. I do however urge you to be more open minded; any story, that we ever read, is nothing without it's conflict. I'm not writing the lame "I love you" moments and nothing more between Chloe and Derek. I'm writing their journey to that point. Take it or leave it, but I've said that from the start, and it's up to you as the reader to read the information I provide for you. I often give hints or foreshadowing to future events; this is just my official note addressing this point before I lose readers who think I've lost my mind and gone Simon/Chloe on them, since I don't have time to get out another chapter just to explain this.


	9. Truth About Siblings

**A/N**: Just because there was some obvious concern in the last chapter that I'm sure many of you might have felt and not necessarily chose to voice, I'm addressing those concerns in this chapter officially and formally, and then after I won't mention it in the authors notes. This will be a long note, but please read.

**PLEASE READ:**

This is **NOT **a Chloe/Simon fanfiction.

This **IS **a Chloe/Derek fanfiction.

Always has been, always will be.

A story is nothing but boredom and pointless words on a page if there is not a little conflict. As I am trying to write a realistic, 'could be the real thing' continuation of the series, I cannot ignore what is provided in the official books. There is evidence that at some point, Simon and Chloe, hopefully for only a short portion of the book, will be together. The author has said herself that _both _guys will get a chance with Chloe. I don't like writing it more than you like reading it, but I'm not the type of writer who just sees an obstacle in a characters path, and has them lamely step aside.

**Skip over the Simon/Chloe aspects if they bother you that much;**

**Enjoy it as just another bump in the road before Chloe and Derek's Happy Ending;**

_Or, stop reading completely - though I'd prefer you gave it a chance! It's still Derek and Chloe._

All the way.

Sorry for the incredibly long delay, my sixty page novella was due this past Friday and I was nowhere near done, so I had to scramble to get it done. Updates should resume at the same pace as before, for awhile at least. Thanks for hanging in there!

**Reckoning**

_EilayAdnayVolieay_

Chapter IX - The Truth About Siblings

I waited for Derek to break the silence; I wasn't sure why I wanted him to. I only knew that I did. When he still hadn't spoken, I decided to speak first.

"How are you?" I asked lamely. He glanced up at me for a moment before turning back to his food.

"Fine." He responded. I waited; he said nothing more. I tried again.

"How's your ankle?"

"Equally fine." I stood up suddenly, catching him by surprise.

"What is your problem with me all of a sudden?" I questioned him. "You were perfectly fine just last night; now it's like we're not even friends." I wanted to kick myself for getting into this conversation; I didn't want to be his friend, right? I couldn't tear him and Simon apart. Yet here I was, demanding his friendship.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Chloe." Derek told me, his voice harsh. "I'm no different. Even if I was, why would you care?" I caught something strange in his eyes then, and an off-tone to his voice. Something _was _bothering him, but I didn't know what. He looked away and began eating again, not acknowledging my presence at all. Great. I sat back down.

Derek and I ate in silence until Simon and Tori returned. Tori looked the same as she had when she left, but Simon looked pale. Was the thought of Tori being his sibling that bad? Or was Tori completely wrong? Maybe what Andrew had wanted to tell them had nothing to do with the sibling factor at all. We were jumping to conclusions, making assumptions.

Simon sat down next to me and didn't say anything. Derek looked between the two of them expectantly; I could tell he didn't like being kept in the dark.

"More of us will be arriving by nightfall; after dinner, you'll be taken to our meeting room to talk to the other supernaturals of this organization." Andrew said, cutting through the silence that had fallen over us. We nodded our heads in acknowledgement but none of us seemed to be very talkative. Andrew went to walk away when Tori spoke up.

"Hey, Andrew? Could we please be allowed to shop for more clothes? I'm getting tired of wearing the same outfit every day, it's sort of… gross." Andrew chuckled and ran his hand through his hair.

"I don't think we can afford you going out yourselves – but I can send someone out to get things that are your size. They might not be your ideal fashion but this isn't a time to be picky." Tori looked like she wanted to protest, but she seemed to have decided to shut her mouth. I was kind of sad myself – I knew that neither Simon nor Derek would want to go with Tori, so if I had, maybe I could get away from both of them for awhile.

A sharp pang of guilt hit me then. It was wrong for me to be dating Simon and still thinking about getting away from him, like he was some sort of plague I had to avoid, wasn't it? If I liked him, I wouldn't be thinking that way. Or at least, I shouldn't be.

I was also a little scared at the thought of talking to the other supernaturals that night. What would they tell us? What would they decide?

Andrew left the room then, and Derek finally seemed to decide he couldn't wait any longer.

"Well?" He said, prompting them. "What did Andrew want to talk to both of you about?" He looked at Simon expectantly, but to his shock, Simon lowered his gaze and said nothing. Moments passed, and Simon remained silently. Finally, Tori rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Try not to act so much like I've ruined your life, would you Simon?" She told him bitterly. I could see the hurt in her eyes and I felt bad for her. She turned to Derek then. "Turns out, my mother thought that my life needed to be more screwed up than it was already going to be. She slept with your dear old dad, and had me."

Derek looked stunned, and looked to Simon for confirmation. Again, Simon said nothing. I was beginning to sense a definite wall between them, as if they were on completely different pages than before. He turned back to Tori.

"Your mother's a witch, right? So wouldn''t that mean you're…"

"A cross-breed? A half witch, half sorcerer? Yeah. Don't remind me, okay?" Tori left the room then without another word. I felt uncomfortable being left alone with Simon and Derek. My sort-of boyfriend and the guy who seemed to hate my guts now.

"I can't believe this," Simon whispered after awhile. Derek's gaze lifted to look at Simon, but I saw the flickering look of pain across his face when Simon turned to me.

I was doing exactly what I had been trying to avoid. Was I destined to tear apart these incredible guys that I cared about so much?

"I mean, I can't believe that Tori's supposed to be my… sister." Something in his voice annoyed me suddenly, and I turned to him defensively.

"This isn't exactly a picnic for her either, you know." I reminded him. He shrugged.

"I know that, I mean, she had a crush on me before right? Thank god I never gave in. It's just… I don't know. I guess I thought my dad would have told me. Maybe he didn't even know."

"He had to have known," Derek interrupted suddenly. "I don't think Andrew could have kept that from him. And I mean, it's not like Tori's mom got pregnant by herself." Simon glared at Derek and I was shocked at the anger in his eyes.

"Dad would have told me, I'm his only son!" He seemed to realize too late what he had said – too late to stop the pain Derek now felt. "Derek," Simon said weakly. "I only meant…"

"Biological son, right? That's all you meant. Well, Simon, I'll do you a favour – I don't need to be a part of your family anymore. You think I don't notice the way you've started cringing around me, ever since I started going through the change? That I fail to notice you never volunteer to help me, that you just… leave? If I make you so uncomfortable, maybe I really should have just left." Derek turned to leave and I ran to stop him. He couldn't leave – he couldn't run away from us again.

"Derek, wait. Simon didn't mean it that way, I know–" Derek shoved me then, and I fell to the ground. He hadn't used that much force on me since that time he had confronted me in the laundry room after I'd found out what a necromancer was. I didn't feel frightened this time, though – and the pain I felt was of a different kind.

"It figures you would stand up for him, but do us both a favour Chloe – stay out of it." He walked out of the kitchen and headed for the stairs. I wanted to follow him, but I knew it was best to leave him to be by himself.

I got up, brushed myself off and turned to face Simon. He looked like he was suddenly sick.

"I didn't mean that," He whispered, to no one in particular. "Derek is my brother in every way that matters. And…" He looked up at me, looking ashamed. "I don't care that he's a werewolf. It doesn't change anything, except… I'm afraid to be around him when he Changes, like he said. I wish I wasn't, but I am, and I don't know how I can fix that. Everything I've ever been taught… I mean, he gets violent when he's not Changed. I've seen that and I've been able to handle it. But when he's Changed…" Simon trailed off, shaking his head.

"He's your brother, Simon." I told him firmly. "He's a human being, no matter what happens to him. I've been there when he's Changed, and he's still the same guy. Actually, he's almost… vulnerable. You should be there for him. I know he must feel alienated, and I know you're not trying to make him feel that way, but it'll only strain your relationship more. You both have to find your dad, we all have to go against people who threaten our very existence. We need _all _of us. You and Derek have to work this out."

"You really care about him a lot, don't you?" Simon asked suddenly, catching me off guard.

"I… of course. Derek is my friend." I responded carefully, not meeting Simon's gaze. He laughed weakly.

"That's not what I meant," Simon explained, staring at me intensely.

"I know it's not," I whispered. "But… Simon? You shouldn't ask questions you don't want the answer to. I'm going to go see how Tori's holding up, and you should go see Derek."

"Okay," Simon whispered, looking away. "I guess you're right. Thanks… for being a good friend." Something about the way he said 'friend' made me feel uneasy and uncomfortable, so I simply nodded before going to see Tori.

I passed Simon and Derek's room on the way, and heard movement inside. I wanted to go talk to Derek, but I knew I had meddled enough. With a sigh, I opened the door to my bedroom with Tori and stepped inside. Tori looked up at me and snorted as I entered.

"Something funny?" I asked her, my eyebrows raised.

"Just your never-ending good luck. Tell me, do you ever get tired of people falling over themselves to get close to you?" Tori asked me snidely.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked her defensively.

"Nothing, I'm sorry, it's just… I'm feeling in a low place right now. Being mean tends to distract me, and you seem to have a little love triangle disaster going on, so I guess you seemed like the opportune victim. Derek would snap my head off, and Simon doesn't give a damn," Tori muttered under her breath.

"How are you holding up with all that?" I asked her cautiously. She rolled her eyes.

"You don't have to walk on eggshells around me, Chloe. I don't care that he's my brother, or that I'm… even more of a freak of nature than I thought. I am a bit angry that my mother put me in this situation though. Was I not enough of a freak for her? She had to make things worse?"

"Maybe she loved him." I immediately regretted trying to stand up for Tori's mother.

"My mother doesn't love anyone," Tori spat. "You don't… treat people that way. Not when you love them." She rolled on her side on the bed, facing away from me. I thought about what she had said, and about all that her mother had put her through. Making her believe that she had some medical condition, that she was hindering her own recovery. Tori tried so hard, but there had never been a chance to recover from her condition.

Thoughts of my own father trickled into my mind, as I wondered how he was doing. There had been many times when I felt as though he didn't care what happened to me, but when I saw how he acted when he believed I was missing… it broke my heart. I wanted to see him, so bad, but I knew it would put him in danger. Would I ever be out of danger? Would I ever be able to see him again? _Or will I always be on the run, _I thought sadly, lying down on my own bed.

The rest of the day passed by uneventfully. I don't know if Simon talked to Derek, or if Derek was even still here. For the longest time, I didn't care. I was tired of the drama raging within me over these two boys, when I had my own problems to deal with. When dinner came, I went down the stairs with Tori, neither of us speaking a word.

I was relieved to find both Derek and Simon sitting at the table, though they weren't even looking at each other. I did a quick examination of the two of them, and didn't notice anything physically different. That was good, I noted. They hadn't gotten into a physical fight.

There were several other people at the table that I didn't recognize, and I blushed under their curious gaze as they watched me enter the room. I wondered if Tori felt as uncomfortable as I did, but I didn't want to ask. I took my seat away from both Derek and Simon. I didn't want to choose sides tonight.

**A/N**: I don't like ending it here, but I wanted everyone to know I wasn't dead or abandoning the story, and that I just had other writing obligations to attend to first. Hope you enjoyed nonetheless.


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